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Minister of War
The Minister of War was a government official charged with overseeing military affairs in the Kingdom of Joseon. As the head of one of the Six Ministries of Joseon, he occupied one of the highest positions in the kingdom. While he officially served the King of Joseon, his true loyalty lay with the powerful Chief State Councilor, Cho Hak-ju. However, unlike most of the other officials he seemed to be occasionally willing to confront Lord Cho when he disagreed with his actions. The Minister of War is first seen overseeing the interrogation of 89 Confucian scholars charged with plotting to overthrow the King, and for spreading seditious rumors of his death. He remains impassive as a scholar denounces Lord Cho's corruption and the King's weakness. Later, he attends a meeting convened by Lord Cho to present apparently conclusive evidence of the scholars' plot and the involvement of the Crown Prince, Lee Chang. The minister quietly chides Lord Cho when the councilor violently slams Chief Scholar Kim Sun's head onto the table for questioning his allegations. Nevertheless, he goes along with Lord Cho's order to arrest Crown Prince for treason. When the Chief Scholar learns that the corpses of court ladies have been found in the palace, he arranges a secret meeting with the Minister of War to share the information. The Chief Scholar insists Lord Cho is hiding something, and says that while he knows the minister is one of Lord Cho's men, he believes he knows right from wrong. He tries to get the minister to support his demand to see the king in person in spite of the Queen's prohibition, reminding him that they both serve the King. The Chief Scholar also claims he has the support of Lord Ahn Hyeon, a hero of the war against Japan, which greatly impresses the minister. Though Lord Ahn retired to his hometown of Sangju three years previously to mourn the death of his mother, the Chief Scholar assures him the ministers and the people will follow whomever Lord Ahn sides with. After the fall of Dongnae, the fugitive Crown Prince orders the warning beacons lit to alert the capital of the infection spreading in the south. However, the ministers in the capital are unsure of the beacons' meaning, and initially believe it could signify another Japanese invasion. The Chief Scholar insists that with the nation in peril, he must speak to the King, and to the other ministers' surprise the Minister of War agrees with him. Four of the high ministers go to the King's chamber, where the guards prevent them from entering. However, to everyone's shock Lord Cho appears and grants them entry, even over the protests of his daughter, the Queen. The officials are horrified when he reveals the King's state, but Lord Cho explains that although the king had become a mindless, man-eating monster as a result of a "severe illness", he was still alive and king of the nation. He then accuses the Chief Scholar of conspiring in treason with the Crown Prince, and shows a stunned Minister of War the pact the two had signed with the other scholars. Lord Cho demands that the Chief Scholar be arrested and beheaded immediately. The furious Minister of War orders the palace guards to take the Chief Scholar to the Royal Investigation Bureau for interrogation. He then hurriedly leaves the King's chamber. The Minister of War is last seen attending the audience in the throne room where Lord Cho announces the Queen's regency for the duration of the King's illness, and the sealing of Gyeongsang Province. Category:Nobility Category:Officials